Competitive Edge

The headlines, as well as the public’s and healthcare professionals’ attention, have been fixated on the COVID-19 pandemic for more than 6 months now. As urgent care provides know, however, that doesn’t stop people from needing care for “typical” complaints. It also doesn’t keep people from the dangers of medications in the home, whether that manifests as temptation to misuse opioids or taking outdated drugs that could either harm them or just not do what …

In spite of many inconsistencies on how COVID-19 is spread, who’s most at risk, and when a vaccine will be (and should be) available, there has been nearly universal agreement among public health experts that wearing a face covering helps reduce risk of contracting the virus. While the issue is much more heatedly debated among the public, the plain fact is that there are many businesses you simply can’t enter unless you’re wearing a mask. …

Too many urgent care centers have suffered financial and personnel losses during the COVID-19 pandemic. From being overlooked as viable participants in widespread testing efforts to patients who were too afraid to leave their homes even for medical care, the industry has taken a major hit. Some businesses may even go under. Others, however, are finding a way to adapt by offering telemedicine services or channeling patients to different locations for different needs. Merion Health …

Every night at 7 pm in some cities, residents come out on their front stoops or hang out their windows to cheer, clap, and bang pots and pans together in a show of appreciation for frontline healthcare workers and first responders. Northwell Health-GoHealth Urgent Care may be going them one better by giving those workers priority access to care at 52 urgent care centers in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County, NY during …

With public fears over COVID-19 at a high pitch, emergency rooms and urgent care centers are being taxed to keep up with demand for immediate attention and care. They’re also learning on the fly how to mitigate risk for infecting other patients, and the staff themselves. Most patients have nothing to worry about, but those who might actually be infected run the risk of infecting others if the right procedures aren’t followed once those patients …

There are 220 children’s hospitals in the United States; many have their own pediatric urgent care facilities. At the same time, as we’ve reported, non hospital-affiliated urgent care operators are popping up everywhere. There’s been little or no overlap, outside of referrals as needed—until PM Pediatrics struck a partnership with WakeMed Children’s to provide urgent care services to younger patients in the Raleigh, NC area. It’s an interesting blend of cultures. Children’s hospital-affiliated urgent care …